Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams? (Paperback)

by Jean Fritz (Author), Trina Schart Hyman (Illustrator) "In the early days of America when men wore ruffles on their shirts and buckles on their shoes..." (more)
Key Phrases: Samuel Adams, John Adams, John Hancock

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Let the others wear the ruffled shirts and ride grandly on horseback; Sam Adams, Massachusetts rebel leader, was a plain and plain-spoken fellow, both in history and in Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams? Adams, it turns out, was horseless for a good reason. On the way to figuring out just what that reason was, the reader gets a nice, personal look at a leader and his times.

In this book, as in the rest of her series of histories, Jean Fritz sneaks plenty of information into her story about Adams, the American Revolution, and the answer to the title question. (For ages 7 and up)

Product Description
In the early days of America when men wore ruffles, rode horseback, and obeyed the King, there lived a man in Boston who cared for none of these things. No one expected Samuel Adams to wear ruffles or pledge allegiance to the King of England, but his friends did think that he might get on a horse. But would he? Never! he said. An ALA Notable Children's Book. Full color.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (September 9, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0698114167
• ISBN-13: 978-0698114166
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #176,636 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #8 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( H ) > Hyman, Trina Schart
  #23 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( F ) > Fritz, Jean
  #84 in	Books > Children's Books > History & Historical Fiction > United States > Colonial & Revolutionary

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't Confuse Sam Adams' Opinion with the Author, January 3, 2000

By A Customer

I liked this book, and found that what the previous review objected to was not the author's ideas, but Sam Adams. I think that it is important to remember that most of the Founding Fathers were not the idealistic gods that we hold them up to be. Many owned slaves, many beleived that as intellectuals, they were too good for battle. It's important that kids realize that not everything is black and white, and just because a book portrays a historical figure accurately, doesn't mean you're going to like them. While Sam Adams is an elitist full of quirks, he was a great thinker and an idealist, and Jean Fritz portrays him as such.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book!, March 27, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams? (Hardcover)

Many years ago I did a report on Samuel Adams for school. This book by Jean Fritz helped me get a high grade. It did not give me the impression that people who are smarter should be excused from being a soldier or any other ideas. In fact I enjoyed it so much that to this day I love learning about the American Revolution, because Jean Fritz made learning fun for me. I suggest that everyone read it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Peculiar Guy, But..., January 13, 2006

By	James T. Charnock - See all my reviews

Who's Sam Adams that someone would write a book about him? Well, he's the guy that pretty much started the Revolutionary War. How could a shabbily dressed fellow who refused to ride a horse (EVERYBODY who was ANYBODY rode a horse) start a war between England (the mother country) and us? There's only one way to find out: R E A D.

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